I like this campaign for Amnesty International by DDB Puerto Rico using photographs by James Reynolds. First thing it made me thing of was the series by Henry Hargreaves, but in Amnesty's case, all the meals are those of executed men who were then proven innocent.
It turns out that back in 2009, Reynolds also made a series of photos of last meals, which he called Last Suppers.
The whole idea of the 'last meal' has always fascinated me. I'm not entirely sure why. I remember when I was younger trying to imagine what I'd choose (still don't know), and when I was older, thinking just how incredibly weird it must be to order the last thing you'd ever eat. Anyway, photographer Henry Hargreaves apparently also finds it interesting. He has recreated some last meals of various inmates, and photographed them.
He says, "As an artist, I find a lot of my inspiration from the weird and unusual. I came across a Wikipedia page about final meal requests before prisoners were executed. I’m originally from New Zealand and, like a lot of foreigners, find the concept of the death penalty still existing in the U.S. really strange. Without needing to take a point of view on the right or wrong of the original crime, sentence, or possibility of a miscarriage of justice, for a brief moment I was able to identify with the person who would request this kind of a meal as their last on Earth. Hopefully with these images, you will be able to think about the condemned man as an individual. I hope that people can look beyond the crime, and stir some empathy for another human being."
I'm not sure about empathy, but I still find these photos absolutely fascinating.
Big thanks to Emma